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The Living Room

Monday, September 20, 2010

My favorite spot in the living room.

Does your house have one of these?

The front room. The sitting room. The living room. The one with no TV and the nicest furniture. I'm not sure if these rooms are included in modern house plans. But whatever you want to call it, we have one, and it is the room we use the least.

It bothers me. I walk by thinking, "We need to go in there. How can I get us to hang out in there? It is a nice room. Why don't we use it?"

Actually, we use it a lot during the holidays because our Christmas tree lives in front of the big window. The room feels magical then. The tree lights twinkle, and the weather just might get cold enough for a fire. We gather and we linger. But otherwise, we don't.

The boys play in the living room sometimes, but it is usually when one wants to get away from the other. (I'll bring the blocks in here and build my own tower, thank you very much.) I go in there with the computer every once in a while, and Hubby has been known the read the Sunday paper on the couch. So, I guess it is more of an individual room. The opposite of the family room.

I suppose it is a place for each one of us to escape. It is right there in the front of our house, the first thing you see when you walk in. But it does seem a world away when you are nestled in the corner, looking at things from that seldom viewed angle. It feels like a place of quiet and solitude. It feels tucked away and a little more formal. The furniture lacks pen marks and the cushions are fluffier. The room is inviting, but in a way that makes you pause and ask, "May I join you?" instead of just flopping down on the nearest chair.

There is a boundary around the living room. And you know what? That is nice, now that I think about it. Maybe we need a room that is off the beaten path. Maybe we need a space for quiet, individual time. Maybe the living room is serving its purpose, after all.

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2 Responses to “The Living Room”

We just decided this weekend to get rid of our formal living room and make it our formal office. Then our office we are using now can become the playroom! We'll see how it goes. I love our living room, it is always so nice! I hate to lose it but we need a playroom desperately! I'll let you know how it goes!

Jayda - I totally understand. If I had that option, I would do it. I've often thought about our old house in Richmond. If we were still in it with these two boys, I would have changed our formal living room into a more casual TV room/den. Then I would have turned that back den into the play room. A play room with active boys would be so nice! Good luck :)